I. Field of the Present Invention
The present invention relates generally to vehicle closure panels, and more particularly to a door panel having upper and lower housing portions which are detachable from each other and wherein the upper housing portion carries a retractable window panel.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Doors for motor vehicles are often made as a unitary structure for enclosing the entire door opening of a motor vehicle body. The lower housing portion of the door structure carries a window regulating mechanism which displaces a window panel to and between a raised position at which the window panel covers the upper portion of the door opening, and a retracted position in which the window panel is recessed within a cavity in the lower housing portion. The lower housing portion is generally formed from an outer panel and an inner panel which define the cavity therebetween adapted to receive the window panel. The lower housing structure also includes door closure actuating means such as a latch mechanism and means for hingedly securing the door within the door opening of the vehicle body.
It can be appreciated that such a unitary structure has a substantial amount of weight. Thus, even when the window glass is retracted so that air flow through the passenger compartment can be provided as desired, a substantial amount of stress and wear in the hinge structure which supports the door occurs during opening and closing of the door structure. Moreover, the weight of the vehicle is not easily reduced by removal of the window panel or its operating mechanism even if the use of the window panel is not desired under certain operating conditions.
It has also been known to construct a vehicle door from separate upper and lower portions. In particular, early car models often included a door panel hingedly secured to the vehicle body and covering only a lower portion of the side opening of a vehicle. The top of the opening was then covered by a separate panel or other window housing separately secured to the vehicle body. In addition, it has been known to hingedly or slideably secure the upper panel or housing to the lower door structure, but such constructions often permitted only limited displacement of the upper panel or positioned it in an exposed or unprotected area when not in use. For example, some previously known upper panels merely overlap the lower door structure or an adjacent body panel of the vehicle, and can obstruct the area within the vehicle passenger compartment.
Furthermore, although it has been known to include removable upper window panels and removable housings for receiving such panels, the removable housings do not include any mechanism for raising or lowering the window. Rather, operating mechanisms have typically been constructed within the lower door structure, and cannot be easily removed from the door structure. Furthermore, such mechanisms support the bottom of the glass panel within the lower housing and render removal of the glass panel itself difficult.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,556,638 discloses an upper window frame which slideably receives a glass panel and can be mounted to a lower door housing. However, the upper frame does not support a window regulator mechanism which can be removed along with the frame.